Around Italy: Campania, Naples, Pompeii, the Amalfi Coast, Islands, Volcanoes, and the Soul of Southern Italian Cuisine

Around Italy: Campania, Naples, Pompeii, the Amalfi Coast, Islands, Volcanoes, and the Soul of Southern Italian Cuisine

Campania is one of the strongest expressions of southern Italy, combining ancient Greek settlements, Roman cities, volcanoes, royal palaces, cliffside villages, islands, fertile farmland, fishing ports, and some of the world’s most influential food traditions.

Napoli

Naples is dense, theatrical, beautiful, difficult, and intensely alive. Greek, Roman, Norman, Angevin, Aragonese, Spanish, Bourbon, and modern layers coexist throughout the city.

Spaccanapoli and Via dei Tribunali

These historic streets cut through the old center past churches, palaces, workshops, pizzerias, shrines, bakeries, and crowded piazzas.

Pizza Napoletana

Traditional Neapolitan pizza depends on disciplined fermentation, soft extensible dough, intense oven heat, and restraint. Pizza Margherita and Marinara remain the foundational forms.

Street Food

Pizza fritta, frittatine di pasta, crocchè, fried seafood, and pastries form one of Italy’s great street-food cultures.

Ragù Napoletano

Large pieces of meat slowly cook for hours in tomato sauce. The sauce dresses pasta while the meat may be served separately.

Genovese

Despite its name, Genovese is a Neapolitan classic in which onions and meat cook slowly into a deeply savory sauce.

Pasta e Patate and Pasta e Fagioli

These dishes demonstrate cucina povera at its best. Pasta often cooks directly with potatoes or beans so starch creates a dense, cohesive texture.

Spaghetti alle Vongole

Clams, garlic, olive oil, parsley, and pasta water create a classic Gulf of Naples preparation. The pasta must finish in the pan with the clam juices.

Castel dell’Ovo and Castel Nuovo

Naples’ castles reflect different phases of the city’s maritime and political history.

Teatro di San Carlo

One of Europe’s great historic opera houses, San Carlo reflects the period when Naples was a major cultural capital.

Cappella Sansevero

The Veiled Christ is among Italy’s most extraordinary Baroque sculptures and embodies the city’s theatrical artistic culture.

Underground Naples

Greek quarries, Roman structures, aqueducts, cisterns, catacombs, tunnels, and wartime shelters create a second city beneath the streets.

Pompeii

The eruption of Vesuvius in 79 CE preserved streets, homes, shops, baths, temples, graffiti, mosaics, and paintings, giving an unmatched view of Roman urban life.

Herculaneum

Different volcanic conditions preserved wooden structures, upper floors, and domestic material to an extraordinary degree.

Mount Vesuvius

The volcano dominates the Bay of Naples and created both destruction and fertile soils for tomatoes, grapes, apricots, and other crops.

San Marzano Tomatoes

The volcanic plains around Vesuvius became famous for elongated tomatoes prized for sauce and pizza.

Gragnano

Gragnano is one of Italy’s great dried-pasta centers. Durum wheat, bronze dies, careful drying, and generations of specialized production created its reputation.

Amalfi Coast

Mountains plunge into the Tyrrhenian Sea, leaving little flat land. Amalfi, Atrani, Ravello, Positano, Praiano, Cetara, and Vietri occupy one of Europe’s most dramatic coastlines.

Amalfi

Once the center of a powerful maritime republic, Amalfi preserves a cathedral, narrow passages, steep valleys, and a deep commercial history.

Ravello

High above the coast, Ravello is known for historic villas, gardens, music, and extraordinary sea views.

Positano

Buildings and staircases climb almost vertically above the sea, creating one of the coast’s most recognizable landscapes.

Amalfi Lemons and Limoncello

Large aromatic lemons grow on terraced hillsides and are used in pastry, savory dishes, preserves, and liqueurs.

Cetara and Colatura di Alici

Anchovy curing produces an intensely savory liquid used sparingly to flavor pasta and other dishes.

Vietri Ceramics

Vietri is famous for colorful ceramic production using marine colors, lemons, geometric patterns, and regional motifs.

Salerno

Salerno has a long waterfront, historic center, and the legacy of one of medieval Europe’s important medical schools.

Paestum

Monumental Doric temples reveal the importance of Magna Graecia in Campania.

Mozzarella di Bufala Campana

Fresh buffalo mozzarella from the plains around Paestum and Caserta should taste of milk, salt, and subtle fermentation and release whey when cut.

Caserta

The Reggia di Caserta is one of Europe’s great royal palace complexes, built for the Bourbon kings of Naples.

Benevento

Roman, Lombard, and later history overlap in Benevento, home to the Arch of Trajan and the famous herbal liqueur Strega.

Irpinia

Mountainous inland Campania is one of southern Italy’s great wine territories.

Taurasi

Aglianico produces powerful reds with tannin, acidity, dark fruit, herbs, smoke, and exceptional aging potential.

Fiano di Avellino and Greco di Tufo

These are among southern Italy’s finest white wines, capable of structure, mineral character, and aging.

Campi Flegrei

West of Naples lies a vast volcanic landscape of crater lakes, fumaroles, vineyards, archaeological sites, and coastal towns.

Procida

The smallest major island in the Bay of Naples has colorful fishing architecture and a more intimate atmosphere than Capri.

Ischia

A volcanic island of thermal waters, gardens, beaches, vineyards, and the traditional rabbit dish Coniglio all’Ischitana.

Capri

Cliffs, sea caves, villas, gardens, hiking routes, Faraglioni, and Roman history made Capri one of the Mediterranean’s most famous islands.

Insalata Caprese and Torta Caprese

Tomato, mozzarella, basil, and olive oil define the famous salad, while almond and chocolate form the island’s classic cake.

Sfogliatella, Babà, and Pastiera

Neapolitan pastry is one of Italy’s richest traditions. Layered sfogliatelle, rum-soaked babà, and wheat-and-ricotta pastiera each represent different historical influences.

Cilento

South of Paestum, Cilento combines mountains, forests, archaeological sites, beaches, villages, olive oil, legumes, grains, and a traditional lifestyle associated with study of the Mediterranean diet.

When to Visit

Spring and autumn are ideal for cities, archaeology, and the coast. Summer suits islands and beaches but is very crowded. Winter reveals a quieter Naples and an extraordinary Christmas pastry tradition.

What Makes Campania Special

Campania gave the world pizza, major pasta traditions, buffalo mozzarella, San Marzano tomatoes, and Neapolitan pastry, but its depth goes far beyond food. Greek temples, Roman cities, volcanoes, royal palaces, islands, vineyards, and fishing towns make it one of Italy’s most culturally intense regions.

Around Italy by ZAFFERANO & CO.

Chef Gianluca